COMPETITION ENTRY
WATERFRONT AND FACILITIES
NICOTERA 2025

DESIGN TEAM:
2A+P/A (Gianfranco Bombaci, Matteo Costanzo)
Gabriela Arujo Moreira Da Silva

The concept for the regeneration of Nicotera’s seafront stems from the idea of transforming the coastal stretch into an expanded ecological system: an archipelago of green shelters capable of evolving over time like a living organism. Rather than a simple boundary between the town and the sea, it becomes a fertile threshold—a new form of natural infrastructure. The short stretch of coastline, already dotted with activities and services, thus becomes the prototype for a contemporary Mediterranean beach, capable of reconciling shade and light, ecological density and urban use.

The concept of micro-forests operates simultaneously on two levels. On the one hand, it enhances the beach’s natural metabolism through the introduction of Mediterranean plant species capable of thriving in conditions of intense sunlight, sand, salt spray, and summer winds. On the other, it creates a network of climate shelters functioning as a system of “emerging shades”: an ecological alternative to the purely mechanical presence of seasonal beach umbrellas.

In Southern Italy’s hot and humid climate, this planted system becomes a form of natural mitigation technology: it filters sunlight, generates air currents, provides shade, and creates microclimates